The Monsters In Men
by Hino-Of-The-Dawn
Summary: Cecil loves Carlos. But on that uncharacteristically chilly night, There's something chasing that Scientist.


It was peaceful that evening, a occurance that in the town of Night Vale, could only mean something was completely un-peaceful somewhere in their little nook of the world. The lights above the Arby's continued to glow, even as the sun slowly set, later than it was supposed to as usual. The Dog Park emitted its static hum that people were not supposed to know about as the mayor constantly assured them that it did in fact not exist. The angels were with Old Woman Josie, idly helping her with the lightbulbs that needed changing. Everything seemed right and yet, Cecil couldn't shake that feeling, that little nipping thought at the back of his mind that perhaps something was not right at all. It began to eat away at him but as he slid the familiar headset over his ears and pulled the microphone close, he pushed it away, knowing that the radio always came before personal issues. It was not a rule he was fond of but the Station Management were and what they liked, Cecil liked.

"Goodnight, Night Vale, Goodnight" And with that, The headset was removed, placed down on the desk as the microphone was flicked off with slender fingers. Leaning back in the padded chair, Cecil stretched out, feeling his bones crack and pop back into place with a smile. Standing up, he grabbed the lukewarm mug of coffee and brought it to his lips, finishing the last mouthful before setting it back down for Intern Dana (Or her doppelganger, Cecil had yet to find out which she was) to take care of. Silently, he moved toward the door, opening it and stepping out into the uncharacteristically chilly street. His teeth gently chattered as he rubbed at his bare arms, fingers unconsciously tracing over the tattoos along his arms as he walked.

The sound of frantic footsteps echoed down the streets, making Cecil look up from his feet. Glancing to his right, the flicker of something white crossed his gaze before vanishing.

"What..." Cecil removed his glasses, cleaning them with the bottom of his sweater vest before placing them back on his face, eyes widening as another shape passed by the alley. "Secret police?" It baffled him. What would they be doing out this late unless- His feet began to move as he broke into a jog, moving down the alley and chasing after the police officer, all the while thoughts clicking over in his head. The Secret Police didn't chase anyone in town. Everyone had attended their re-education meetings. All but... "Carlos" He breathed, skidding to a halt as everything seemed to freeze. They were after Carlos. Sweet, beautiful Carlos. It made his heart thunder in his chest and breath pick up. What if they hurt him? What if they did something worse? What if they- The thought didn't even complete itself as Cecil began to run again, turning down alleys and side streets in hopes of catching up.

"Stop, please!" Carlos shouted, holding the papers close to his chest as he ran, out of breath and body aching. The Secret Police continued to chase, seemingly unfazed by the constant running. It made Carlos let out a pitiful moan as he turned a corner, trying to escape them. They were relentless in their chase, drawing nearer as Carlos turned onto the main road, running as fast as he could towards the end. Perhaps if he could find someone else they could- His feet tangled up in eachother and he fell forward, slamming right into the floor and rolling, white lab coat becoming dirtied. His glasses cracked with the impact yet he took no notice as he tried to back away, hands dragging his form while his feet tried to scramble for some smooth ground he could use to stand. His body trembled and he felt himself becoming frightened. Not like when he had discovered the strange things inside the clocks. This was a brand new level of fear. The Secret Police edged closer and close but as they neared him, one stopped. Carlos stared at him, only making eye contact for a split second before a taloned hand tore through his body. The officer looked down, just managing to see it before the hand moved out and he was tossed to the floor before having his head violently stomped on. The sound of cracking bones filled the air and made Carlos feel sick as he looked up at the attacker, eyes widening in shock.

Long talons, dripping with blood spiked out from fingertips which twitched and pulsed with each breath the owner took. Along the arms, dark winding tattoos traced up and down, They moved and peeled away from the skin, leaving a mark as the ink slowly solidified into long, dripping tentacles. Carlos looked up at the face of his strange, frightening savior but they moved before he could see, grabbing the next officer roughly and tearing limb from limb in a harsh, swift movement. Large, slightly transparent wings were spread wide, slamming into the third officer and knocking him to the floor as the creature stomped on his chest before delivering a lethal blow with its talons to the man's head. Carlos quickly scrambled to his feet as the creature also stood, shaking the blood and whatever other undesirables it had stuck to its talons away. It turned and Carlos took a step back, eyes wide.

"Carlos?" The creature asked. The voice was low and gentle, curling into his ears despite the terrifying appearance of the speaker. It was then that everything seemed to click over. He looked so different with the third eye and extra limbs but that golden hair was a definite sign.

"Cecil?" Carlos squeaked out. Cecil was still, the transparent feathers of his wings dropping off and blowing away in the chilling breeze. The talons slowly retracted, returning to normal fingernails once more as the dripping tentacles simply vanished, leaving splotches of ink on the dusty ground as the tattoos became still and full again. Even the tiny fangs that poked out from the radio announcer's mouth slowly retracted until he was nothing but Cecil. Plain, ordinary Cecil.

"Carlos" Cecil breathed with deep relief. Sweet, beautiful Carlos was okay. Sure he was a bit dirty and his magnificent glasses which framed his face so beautifully were cracked but he was alive. He was okay yet as he took a step forward, Carlos backed away. "Carlos? What's-"

"Stay back" His tone was firm as he stared at Cecil. "Stay away"

"Carlos, I didn't mean to stomp on his head and rip him apart" Cecil said yet Carlos just backed away before turning sharply and running as fast as he could down the street. Cecil stared down the street, taking a few steps forward to chase before letting out a sigh of defeat.

"And then he was like 'Stay away' and I was like 'Carlos' and then he ran off" Cecil sighed as he dropped his head into his hands, rubbing them. "I just don't get what went wrong Listeners" He paused and looked around the studio idly before reaching over for his coffee. "But anyway, before Station Management get irritated - The Weather"


End file.
